Research in ethnomathematics has become predominantly focused on "local cultures" and non-scholarized forms of mathematics, thus becoming less a critical reflection on the sociopolitical roots of academic mathematics and the place it occupies in the popular imagination and in schooling, and more of a learning device. Such a development…

The limit concept is a fundamental mathematical notion both for its practical applications and its importance as a prerequisite for later calculus topics. Past research suggests that limit conceptualizations promoted in introductory calculus are far removed from the formal epsilon-delta definition of limit. In this article, I provide an overview…

It might be trite to observe that every research study is framed within a cultural background. In this paper we argue that the description of the cultural background is important for discussing, evaluating and exploiting internationally the findings of local educational studies. This issue is fundamental in every study in mathematics education…

In the last two decades some researchers have been using elements of Critical Theory to rethink the aims and the possibilities of school mathematics. The field known as critical mathematics education has become an important research area, and has been informing teachers who felt the need to change their practices. In this article, we explore the…

This paper contrasts public discussions about the educational troubles of boys and girls to consider what a gender equitable mathematics education might look like. Both public discussions and mathematics education research typically do not carefully define or theorize gender, tend to essentialize gender, and have narrow or unclear definitions of…

Ewald Fettweis (1881-1967) was the first researcher to develop and establish the term ethnomathematics. This article presents his contribution to ethnomathematics and its development as a scientific theory. We will show that he was the first researcher to realize and practice ethnomathematics in his research and to explain it in his lectures, thus…

In this paper, we engage in a thought experiment about how students might notate their reasoning for composing fractions multiplicatively (taking a fraction of a fraction and determining its size in relation to the whole). In the thought experiment we differentiate between two levels of a fraction composition scheme, which have been identified in…

Ecological sustainability has not been a major focus of mathematics education research, even though it has attracted considerable attention in other areas of educational research in the past decade. The connections between mathematics education and ecological sustainability are not readily apparent. This paper explores how mathematics educators…

This article addresses the learning paradox, which obliges researchers to explain how cognition can advance from a lower level of reasoning to a higher one. Although the question is at least as old as Plato, two major flaws have inhibited progress in developing solutions: the assumption that learning is an inductive process, and the conflation of…

After describing his research interests and classroom perspectives, the author discusses the "social construction" frame in which he suggests that teaching and learning in the mathematics classroom be viewed. Along with the three constructs of activities, communication, and negotiation, social construction offers promise for research exploration.…

This study concerned conceptual difficulties of college students learning programming and ways the teacher can simplify the process. An analysis of general strategies used in solving problems involving loops is given, with four types of hierarchical strategy categorized. Students had difficulty transforming their algebraic descriptions into…

The first 12 volumes of "The Mathematics Teacher" were examined to determine the extent to which societal changes regarding women were reflected in mathematics education. Evidence on the extent of participation by women and attitudes concerning differences between boys and girls in learning mathematics are presented. (MNS)

An overview to a session at the Fifth International Congress on Mathematical Education is given. Papers on research by Cooney, curriculum development by Goffree, reform in mathematics education by Stephens, and a summary by Nickson are included. (MNS)

Described are four hour-long sessions of children working with the definition and use of a procedure for triangles in Logo programming. The conclusion is that turtle geometry is not a trivial activity. (MNS)

Information is presented from a three-year research investigation in London which aims to characterize good mathematics teachers. Teacher, pupil, and classroom perspectives are each included for one teacher. (MNS)